


Control

by iCe (iCeDreams)



Series: Control [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: BDSM, Bathing/Washing, D/s, Engagement, Exhibitionism, F/M, Knifeplay, Throne Room
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-09-16
Updated: 2010-09-24
Packaged: 2017-10-12 03:52:50
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/120455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iCeDreams/pseuds/iCe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being Fire Lord, Zuko has learned that in any relationship, control is necessary. And he and Mai control each other rather well.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Controlling Fire

**Author's Note:**

> Written because I don't get why it just has to be Mai, or it just has to be Zuko.
> 
> Chapter 1 warnings include: exhibitionism. Throne room scene loosely based on 'The Fortune Hunter'  
> Chapter 2 warnings include: light BDSM and knifeplay.

**Disclaimer** :Avatar: The Last Airbender sprouted from the brilliant minds of Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, and is owned by Nickelodeon. I'm borrowing Mai and Zuko for a while. I promise I'll return them with minimal bleeding and won't try to take money off of them.  


* * *

Sometimes, Mai was in control.

When she was, there were knives. There was blood. There was fear. But always, always, there was trust.

Sometimes, Zuko was in control.

When he was, there was fire. There was passion. There was discipline. But always, always, there was love.

So they had agreed, in their stand-offish and nonchalant way that they should finally get married. The five years after Sozin's comet had been hard on Zuko as Fire Lord, and he had been so young, and there had been too many political and stability problems that there hadn't been any time than just simply be with each other.

Now that most of the short term goals had been achieved, advisers had finally started noticing the time they spent in each other's company, and they had taken an active interest in it. Marriage to each other became the logical choice.

They had wanted to announce the engagement privately, to a group of small friends, but his advisers would have none of it. And politically, it was better that they endured a public event. So Mai had found herself in the swirl of engagement planning, until finally, she had been caught by Zuko and been firmly ordered to undergo a royal hair combing.

Mai enjoyed the water pulling her hair and the combs gliding on her long locks. There was something soothing about the sounds of tricking water against the rocks, that she had fallen asleep in short order. She woke up sleepily just as the sun cast orange hues on the room, a comb still working on her hair. She blinked her eyes open, still languid from sleep. She almost always fell asleep through the combing. There was a bone deep contentment when someone was caring for you, brushing your hair, lulling in a way.

"I was wondering if I was going to be forced to go to the announcement by myself," Zuko's gravely voice was serious. Mai tried to turn towards the direction of his voice, but his firm hand settled her back on the chair. "You're going to ruin an hour of my combing."

And Zuko hated for any of his work to go to waste. So she didn't move, even when he stopped and she heard the clink of the comb against its marble case. A white towel was wrapped around her shoulders as he gingerly lifted her hair out of the water and helped her up. Even with the towel, her hair was long enough to make her dress damp.

"You're getting me wet," Mai scolded a little. He had never actually gotten used to drying. And he had dismissed everyone competent enough to do it. He had tried fire bending before, but it made her hair so unnaturally frizzy that he usually just let it drip around the floor. It was a mess to clean up, but there were benefits to being Fire Lord.

"You'll need to change anyway," he said softly as he used another towel to pat some of her hair dry. He held her hair away from her bodice anyway and gave her a small nudge. "Come on, I have your dress in my room."

She lifted an eyebrow at that, but didn't comment further. His suite **was** closer than her house, and it was more practical and time-saving to do all the preparations there. She wanted to turn to him, but he had clamped down on her shoulder again. It was one of **his** days.

Only a small corridor separated his room from the combing chambers and he started undressing her from behind as soon as he closed the doors. He untied the strings that kept her dress together, barely touching bare skin in the process and dropped them to the floor. He was uncommonly untidy today. She shivered lightly at the cold, and subtly the fires that lit his rooms burned stronger.

He took out the breast-bindings carefully, unwrapping her from it slowly. He urged her to lift her arms as he peeled it off gently, and then exchanged it for the red silk bindings that came with the dress she would wear that night. She reached for one end but he nudged her hand impatiently away as he smoothed out the fabric over her skin. His right hand unrolled the silk slowly, while his left followed, laying it against her breasts in the weaving pattern that was more intricate than the usual.

"Is it difficult to breathe?" he asked as he tied the knots. She tested it slowly. There was restriction, and it was hard to take deep breaths, but breathing was not a problem, and she wouldn't faint from his ministrations. Not unless he meant other things. He always made her a little breathless. She shook her head. "Good. All those sprains when I was younger managed to make me good at managing bandages at least."

He finally walked in front of her, eyeing her critically. His eyebrows drawn in concentration. He was already dressed in his formal robes. The high collared shoulder guards and the black, gold and reds always made him look too serious. It helped him look older when he needed. It helped that the crown was displayed prominently as well.

"Found what you're looking for?" Mai asked solemnly as she underwent his scrutiny. She was wearing her knife straps and her underwear. Stripped down to minimum essentials, he had managed to make her feel special instead of insulted. He touched the small stilettos at her wrists and the knife holsters along her forearm.

His eyes rose to meet hers. He turned around without answering and went to his desk where a small wooden box was placed. He opened it and beckoned for her to come. Curiously she peered over his shoulder and he tugged her in front of him, holding his arms around her. The box contained an array of small steel orbs, almost the size of the small marbles that she had seen him playing as a child.

"Choose two," he ordered.

They were all identical but she weighed them against her palm and picked the most even weighted spheres from the lot, presenting them to him purposefully. He touched one and it warmed suddenly as it rolled around continuously shifting on her palm. When he touched the other she almost dropped them as his lightning sent a little shiver through her. He closed his hands over them helping her to hold on to them.

"Don't lose them," he admonished lightly as he picked both and rolled them against his fingers. He propped his chin against her shoulder. Mai could only lean back against him in support. "They were my old practice beads; to contain the smallest of my fire and lightning. Did it hurt?"

She failed miserably to answer the first time, before she cleared her throat and try again. "No."

He brought his hand up and cupped her. After the almost clinical way he had been treating her, it was a shock that he was touching her intimately now. "I think your hands are too unsteady to hold them, Mai." He whispered as he slid his fingers against the cloth of her panties. He kept his knee between her legs to keep them open.

She licked her lips as her breath hitched. He rolled them against her abdomen before he pressed them deep within her folds. She moaned slightly as she felt them move and slide before his fingers left her as well. She tightened her muscles, and gasped when he gave her a small buzz. If he hadn't been behind her, supporting her up, she wasn't sure if she would have remained upright.

She caught his smile as he took her formal regalia, all laid out in his bed, and held it up for her to step into. There was a smile hovering on his mouth. "I'll be really upset if you lose them, Mai," he reminded her.

"Let's see if you say that when I have my go at you." Mai complained as he heated one of the balls up. She barely managed a thought as he wrapped her in her formal red robes. The silk was almost unbearable against her skin. It was a wonder that the breast-bands contained her. He didn't allow her to help him, so she let him arrange her like a well loved doll. "And you're not making it easier!"

His hand lingered over the last elaborate tie, ignoring her complaints. He looked at her eyes again and must have liked what he saw because he spun in front of her and offered his hand. "Come on my lady. Your engagement party waits."

She took a step towards him and almost stumbled. They were the most exquisite form of torture, the shifted inside her as she walked. And she had a feeling he was going to keep buzzing her the entire night. "How am I going to socialize without a straight sentence in my head?"

"You hate socializing."

She hated it when he reminded her of the truth.

oOo

They announced them at the entrance of the great hall. He buzzed her as they walked down the steps, which caused her to almost lose her footing again. She gave him a glare but he said in a low voice, "Careful, others might think you have some other emotion than ennui."

He was proud that he was the only one who could elicit her stronger emotions. He succeeded in tweaking her emotions quite well. He wondered if she could manage to keep up with Ty Lee with the way he'd wound her up. And as soon as he'd deposited her with the Kiyoshi warriors, he was eaten up by the crowd of politics.

There were ambassadors of good will, chieftains of water tribes, he spotted some of the old gang and he smiled when he spotted Toph. "Hey, Sparky, finally convinced Mai to take a chance on you?"

He shrugged as he looked back at Mai again waved a small finger to send her yet another buzz, in which she nonchalantly turned around to look for him. He smiled and focused on Toph. "Mai has always believed in us. We just never had the time to settle."

"Hmmm..." Toph asked curiously. "What's that bending you're doing?"

He shouldn't have kept with Toph. He knew she'd find out. He rubbed his knuckles against her hair, even though she was dressed as a proper Earth Kingdom heiress. "Keeping some sparks alive, squirt."

"Hey, watch the hair! I am not going to sit another round **combing**." He smiled as he remembered Mai's combing. He liked taking care of her. Toph snorted and pulled him towards old friends "I don't get why you separated from her when you would just **think** about her. Come on, you might as well talk to Aang and everyone else."

oOo

Ty Lee had the attention span of a three year old. After they talked about their respective lives, about Kiyoshi and all the other things friends did to catch up, a young fire nation noble caught her attention and she was off to perform. It left Mai with the need to circulate and to mingling.

It was just so tiring. It was hard to nod and acknowledge people because all she wanted was to find Zuko and an empty room somewhere. He was making it quite unbearable for her to stand without support.

There was only need and want and him.

She didn't like losing control in public places. She leaned against a wall. It was so against her character to be anything but bored in a public gathering. It was probably why Zuko had done it in the first place. She was going to kill him. She needed him now, but he was off talking to **important** people.

She took a steadying breath and nodded at another noble before leaning against a wall. She needed fortification. Zuko was bending lighting hard right now. It buzzed deliciously against the ball that held it, as it continually shifted as she moved. It touched her core then traveled to her spine. It was driving her completely mad.

She closed her eyes to enjoy the feeling, that ache of continuously wanting him.

He was getting jealous. She could tell. Any time she talked to a guy, or anybody **male** dared to walk up to her and talk to her, he would send her a punishing jolt of bending. So she just **had** to surround herself with all of these pretty males in the hopes that he'd lose patience soon and fetch her. And cling to her. And **burn** for her too.

She opened her eyes. Three males, around her, talking about politics. The most **stimulating** of all topics. But if she was going to be Fire Lady, and not just consort, she had to at least show some sort of interest. She raised her eyebrow. Okay that was all the interest she could muster. Not when Zuko was sending her flames.

"Lady Mai, do you believe all of these changes in the curriculum? Dancing?" From a male whose name she'd forgotten.

Dancing. Zuko hated dancing. He did it for her though. He hated it, but he did it if she requested it. And then afterwards, there wasn't much to hate if she danced **with** him. **Against** him -- the jolt he sent her almost sent her knees weak. She leaned more heavily against the wall. She was going to kill him. Slowly.

She found three expectant male faces in front of her. Dancing. Of course. "I don't find anything wrong with, dancing, gentlemen," her voice was low, almost intimate. Damn it. If someone propositioned in the middle of the party, it was not going to be her fault.

All three males cleared their throats. She closed her eyes and leaned against the wall again. She hoped that was the most that they would ask of her. They'd been asking about land reform. Military. Anything that they could think of. She'd stayed because they were the prettiest males this side of the kingdom. And Zuko hated pretty males.

"Lady Mai, would you like anything?" The voice was not rough, it was not gravely and she didn't want to answer anymore. It was polite code for -- _Lady Mai, you are freaking us out, and is anything the matter?_ At least she **thought** it was.

Mai opened her eyes a crack. "The fires are just slightly warm." _Goddamnit Mai, you live in the Fire Nation. Your fiancé is a fire bender. Surely there was another reason for her to be losing the battle against staying up right?_ She cleared her throat.

Someone touched her shoulder, and there was heat in the touch. She turned towards this new intrusion and almost fell to her knees when she saw it was Zuko. She moved to him, and he caught her, making it appear like she leaned into him. Her face pressed against his shoulder blade, he bended into her again as he dismissed the unwanted males. She bit into his shirt lightly and he gave another punishing buzz before he focused on her, "You're showing your flushed face to everyone, Mai."

She groaned slowly and she wondered if the sound maddened him as his bending was doing to her. She hoped it did. In a secluded corner in the great hall his arms protecting her from other eyes she rubbed herself against him, satisfied when she felt his reaction to her outlined in his robes.

"I think I might just scream in want," she whispered as she hid her face in his arms, her voice cracked a little. The buzzing had been constant, erratic and hard at times. It raised her temperature and made her breathing shallow. "Claim I'm tired. People will believe it. Hell, tell them I'm bored. Please, Zuko. Let's go to your room. You made me want it enough."

"We haven't announced the engagement," he admonished. Which was the point of the entire gathering. They were the only ones calling it an engagement party. Every one thought they were going to announce something, not just what it was. Well some people **knew** but not everybody did. She just wished he wasn't practical. The constant bending kept his voice rougher than usual. His bending always roughened his voice and deepened it. It almost reminded her of his moments when he whispered her name in release. "Let's duck in the throne room. No one should be there."

The sight of her almost undone, exited him. She could tell by the way his golden eyes had flared. He breathed her in as if it could calm him. There was no calming him tonight. He pulled her with him towards the throne room. How he managed the trek without meeting anybody, she didn't know. They were conspicuous enough. The Fire Lord and his lady.

Their visitors would be distracted by the firebending masters. Zuko had planned the entertainment well. He led her towards the less populated halls of the main castle. He nodded to the two guards before pulled her in the throne room and then shut the heavy doors behind them. He tugged her into the low dais of the throne room and then hugged her close to him.

"It's too dark here," she said as she took in the black tiles and the black pillars. He bended fire into the river of oil that separated the throne from the rest of the people and council members, and the gold reflected the dancing flames. "And hot. How do you stand it?"

"By moving most of the meetings in an informal receiving room. And using this room only when **strictly** necessary." He licked her ear, and she shuddered. "This is necessary. Look at all of these people here, Mai. Thousands of petitioners bowing before us." He rubbed his hand against her breast and kissed her ear. "They want to see their Fire Lord take his lady on the throne, against it."

He trailed his hand against her dress and brought it up, the silky material smooth on her skin. She moaned when he exposed her waist and he slipped his fingers inside her folds heating the balls and then buzzing her. She moved her hips against his hand, demanding. He was against her, steadying her. Wanting her as he worked on her while he bent small amounts of lightning and fire. "You didn't lose them, Mai. Very good."

Her head was on his shoulder now her arms pulling him closer and one of her hands encouraged his. She was moaning and shivering against him. Her voice was loud on the empty hall. He pressed hard against her. "All these petitioners envy me, Mai. Could you feel their anticipation in seeing you? They want to see you, hear you come apart."

Her movement became urgent against his. She was close, so very close. He collected the small metallic balls and kept them, then sat on the throne. She was desperate, her eyes wild. He pulled her to sit on him, lifting her skirts up widening her legs showing the room what was his. She instinctively held the throne's arm rest for balance he took a moment to admire her form, back arched, head leaning against the throne back, face and lips flushed. She moaned softly reminding him that she as waiting for him and he slid inside her. "They will **all** know you're mine."

She made a small whimper. He pushed her hair back and kissed her nape softly. Then he held her close. "I want you so much, Mai."

"Zuko. Fire Lord or not. Your audience is going to start leaving if you don't **move**!" Mai hissed. He kissed her nape again as he began thrusting into her slowly. Helping her move on him as he moved her hips. She breathed out in frustration as she pounded against him, trying to take him harder.

He gave into her demands, and matched her pace and her depth. He closed his eyes as he felt the tightening of his balls, the throbbing of his blood. The strong beat of her heart against his. The fire against the dais flared higher, illuminating the room as bright as daylight. And he lost himself in his lady.

oOo

"The guards got a free show," Mai commented dryly as Zuko helped straighten her dress. She had to give him credit. He hadn't creased the dress beyond repair.

"We had a wall of fire between us and them," Zuko scoffed. "They couldn't have seen you."

"They heard me though," Mai pointed out as Zuko smoothed her ribbons and tucked her hair.

"They know you're mine," Zuko said as he held out his hand to her. "And they know the consequences of gossip."

Mai sighed. He was usually shyer with sex than she was. But he hadn't gotten over the post-coital glow... yet. "One of these days I'm shoving those balls up your ass and see how you like it."

His grip tensed and then relaxed. She laughed. Turn about was fair play after all. "Fire Lord, present me to your subjects one more time."

He almost stumbled.

oOo

That night, the Fire Lord announced his intention to wed Lady Mai. The whole kingdom rejoiced.

They also approved of the fact that the Fire Lord was deeply in love with his lady that he stuttered when he presented her to his court and that he fidgeted with thanking them for coming to see her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this is the first foray in writing both avatar and this type of fic. I haven't written in a while but had gotten so hooked with MaixZuko so I decided to step back into writing once again.
> 
> I realized once I started looking for Zuko fics that there were tons of Zuko Jet smut, and lots of Zutara smut, and lots of Zuko x Sokka smut, but where the hell was all the Maiko Smut??? Too few and far between. Hence this. And while I enjoy almost any pair up Zuko ends up with, I find that Mai x Zuko settled against my romantic side quite easily.
> 
> It didn't end up as expected, and it was harder to write than I thought, with no beta and no experience at this so comments and criticism are welcome.
> 
> I am unsure about Toph's characterization, hence the extremely few lines present here.


	2. Controlling Fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mai cleans her knives, and is interrupted by a frustrated Fire Lord.

She owed him for the engagement, but she hadn't quite figured how to exact payback when wedding arrangements were keeping them both busy. In the end, she didn't try to meet up with him. A little separation could do wonders for their wedding. Their reunions had always ended in spectacular feats that had them both "not receiving visitors" for quite a while.

So she actively didn't do anything to correct the situation, and decided to focus on her other toys.

She rubbed her fingers against the set of knives before her. She had two sets of knives, one was her standard set, which she threw against the wall when she was bored, more often than not lately, or against her enemies, something that wasn't too abundant lately. It was red tinged steel bought when she was younger.

Another set, was more rarely used. It was a rare pattern welded set with a mosaic along the knives. The balance was good, and she kept them sharp and clean personally. As with most personal weapons, no one else handled these. She picked one up and began wiping it with a cloth instilled with her preferred purification agents. She then followed it up with a clean cloth to dry it.

It was quite unfortunate then, that Zuko had decided today of all days to come looking for her and found her handling the knives. There was a sharp intake of breath as he hovered over her door. He didn't know if he wanted to come in or out. She could live with that. He never feared her red knives. The mosaic though... well yes, she could live with that.

She tilted her head to one side and rose from her table. "Finally realized we haven't seen each other for days?"

A moment of hesitation before he stepped into her room. He closed the door behind him. "I wanted to give you space to decide."

She raised her eyebrow. He raised his. "You're a moron." She crossed her arms in front of her.

He flushed. He started a sentence several times and when he failed to complete it, they settled down to a staring match.

Mai sighed. "Whatever."

"My next meeting is in an hour, maybe after lunch. I told them we all needed to walk and resume later. It's a rather... open ended break. I was getting frustrated. It's one of those things where everyone thinks they're right and no one wants to bend."

She went to her desk and lit an incense stick. It was enough to signal the end of an hour. He shivered lightly when his eyes dropped to the knives displayed prominently beside her incense holder.

Sometimes, her Fire Lord needed punishment so **badly**. And she had wanted to play this out on the wedding night, damn it.

But he had said he was frustrated. And he had just walked in on her with her pattern welded knives. "Did you lock the door behind you, soldier?"

He stood up straighter. There was a frantic tilt to his eyes. She waited patiently for him to decide if he wanted to play or work. In the end he knelt down in front of her slowly, watching her before lowering his head in a bow. The Fire Lord doesn't bow to anyone, but well... this soldier he's seen enough kneeling to wear out her rugs. He has never turned her away before, even though he always panicked. "I am at my Queen's command."

She unpinned his crown and set it near her knives. She let down his hair and wove her hands against it, as she tried to decide on a scene. "I was sharpening my knives, soldier. Disrobe and lie on my bed as I like you."

He flinched but he obeyed. He smoothed out the Fire Lord's robes and hung them neatly on a coat hanger beside her bed as he lay down on her bed. She smiled as she pulled one of her knives and ran it on a whetting stone. She wouldn't be doing any of the sharpening now, but it was torture for Zuko to hear it. She finished at one and looked at her incense stick before turning to Zuko.

Naked. On her bed. Eyes cast low. It was one of **her** turns.

She opened one of her fragrance oils and took a whiff. Fire blossoms. Oh Zuko would be pissed. She brought the small bottle and dipped her fingers in it, while weaving the invisible patterns on his arms.

He inhaled deeply. There was a starting protest on his lips. "You remember that if you want to be released from my services, you could always go to the Fire Lord, soldier. You could always take his crown."

He always started to protest but didn't take any of her outs. Mai smiled as she said, "I thought so. Would you heat up the oil as I work? Be careful not to burn yourself. It **is** oil." She didn't check if he did but continued on his right arm, then his left. She looked at his eyes. They were intently looking at her hands.

She trailed a finger over his scar. He flinched again. "Do you need to be tied down, soldier? You keep moving." He stilled. He closed his eyes then looked back at her, then down again.

She trailed oil against his body. His nipples earned her a long hard groan. His body was flushed, his face had darkened, and his eyes were half lidded. His abdomen rippled as she touched him there. The fires were starting to burn brighter in her room. Just as well that there was only the incense stick. "If you burn the incense stick to the ground, our time will be over, soldier, and you're going to have to go crawling back to where you came from."

The fires banked, moderated. Control, he still had some form of control. She oiled his legs next, and he almost pulled his foot from her fingers when she oiled the balls of his feet. He watched her as she worked over his legs, she could almost feel him shaking. Like it was their first time together. They always shake during their first time.

She inched up carefully, like she didn't have a deadline. He was already painfully aroused. She oiled his shaft slowly, and he almost leapt out of the bed. But her other hand was holding his hips down and she was looking at him intently.

He growled. She smiled as she stood up and wiped her hands on a piece of cloth. She had been tempted to wipe it on his robes, but that wouldn't do. "You know, I think maybe you do need to be tied down. What do you think, soldier?"

He was breathing heavily. He took too long to respond. "I don't think I can control myself enough, majesty."

It was a title that wasn't used in the Fire Nation. The Fire Nation used Fire Lord, because it was a remnant of a time that the Fire Lord was the head sage. But the title Queen was used in Ba Sing Se, and it seemed strangely apt to use them here, between the two of them.

She brought out several swathes of cloth and reached for his arm first, then tied it to the bed post. There was vibration in his arm, like he wanted to move but he'd locked his arm against his will. He had fought viciously the first few times they'd attempted this. But there had always been some submissive lurking beneath Zuko that she recognized when she'd punished him for leaving her.

And he'd loved her enough for his trust. She finished tying him down. He was still tensed, ready to break free, so she fingered the last swath of cloth... and decided to blindfold him as well.

He turned his head to the side breathing hard she touched his skin. Fever pitch, the oil must be driving him crazy. "I don't appreciate that you're making this difficult for me, soldier." With barely controlled panic he set his head flat on her bed. He stilled. He breathed hard with want, but he stilled.

Firebenders hated the dark almost as viciously as they hated the cold. The mere fact that they had flames eliminated the need for it. Zuko had probably never experienced darkness since he learned to bend his first flame. He looked at her, and then set his eyes down cast again. "I'm sorry, my queen."

She squeezed his arm then tied the silk around his eyes.

She checked the incense. He had bended its flame out. Oh the man was going to have to be punished hard. She smiled as she began to sharpen her knives again. The slow snick of the knife against the whet stone unsettled Zuko enough because he wouldn't know when she's going to decide that she had sharpened it just right and it wanted to taste his blood.

There was a knock on the door. He **had** locked them. Bolted them shut despite her knives out on the table. The man sometimes projected his need to be punished so badly. "Lady Mai, is the Fire Lord perhaps with you?"

Mai didn't stop the movement of the knife against the stone. "I'm sorry. I haven't seen the Fire Lord since an hour ago. Please fetch me some food and place it outside. I'm in need of a repast."

There was a slight hesitation before the servant answered, "Very well, Lady Mai."

And that was that. An hour, or maybe after lunch he had said. She brought one knife and scraped the edge against his abdomen. He rocked trying to move away from the sensation and she slapped the flat of the blade against him. "Do you want to be cut unintentionally, soldier?"

There was a long pause as Mai leisurely scraped the blunt edge of the blade against his thighs. Unlike her red knives, these were not double edged. "I expect an answer when I ask my questions, soldier." There was a slight shiver in him, he was afraid. He was excited.

"Yes, my lady." He took a deep breath. "No not unintentionally." Another pause. "My queen."

She ground the hilt of the knife just under his balls and his hips rose again. "Please. Please... please--" he whispered against the bed.

She would have loved to stripe him, and then paint him with deep reds that the Fire Nation was known for... but the blood was going to seep through his robes. He was going to need rest after it, and mostly because there were **some** things that she'd need to reserve for her wedding.

She didn't have enough time for it either, not now when he could still return to his meetings. But there was always enough time for pleasure. And though Zuko had always been intimately aware of his pain, she found that it was hard for him to recognize pleasure. He hated the helplessness of it at times. But they worked on that, together.

She fisted his hair and brought her hand down to his arousal stroking him mercilessly. His voice deepened. His pulse quickened. He tried to move away from her hand. His head moved from one side to the other before she pulled him done for a kiss. He was starving for contact. He demanded from that kiss as she took from him.

And then she abruptly pulled her hand away. He groaned in protest. "Not quite yet, soldier. You're mine now. Not the other way around."

He dropped his head on the mattress, breathing heavily.

She took away the blindfold as she looked at his eyes. She leaned her forehead against his. "Soldier, you remember the Fire Lord's problems with land disputes? Close your eyes and gather them all into the center of your mind's eye."

He looked at her then closed his eyes. "Good, soldier. Now bring all of those problems there and start a small fire with your bending at it. It's burning now, small start. In a while, it will burst into a large inferno, but you control it. "

He let out a ragged breath. He was a powerful bender. It was almost like a bending exercise. "You know that ball of fire will explode in a while. In five of my breaths it will explode, and you will feel it through your spine, your arm, your fingers, your toes. You don't fear the fire. You embrace it."

Mai breathed in, "Five..." he copied her, his breaths moving with her. The tension that he'd been vibrating with earlier was virtually gone. With every breath she took, he settled more into the stillness that he rarely achieved outside of her bed. Zuko was wildly passionate, easy to anger and easy to provoke. "Two..."

"One..." He wasn't straining now. He lay back on the sheets. Eyes closed. "Zero." She pressed hard on the glans. Everything that contained fire in the room exploded. Zuko shouted his release, his voice hoarse, as if he'd been shouting for days. His bonds burned and he shot up to capture her and he kissed her violently.

He leaned his forehead against hers, drained. The fires dropped in the room, suddenly extinguished. He was breathing heavily, leaning heavily on her. As if she was his breath and his life. He blinked, but she saw that it was an effort.

"Damnit, Mai, I might have killed you," Zuko said hoarsely as he flopped down the bed. Exhausted.

Mai gave him a small smile of contentment. "I'm fairly sure that you wouldn't burn your fiancée to a crisp." she looked around the room and frowned. "It does wonders for my room though. The Fire Lady's apartments must be flame proof at least."

"Not everything is fire proof," he said. He closed his eyes. His next words were close to mumbling. "It's you who insists you stay in your house. I have perfectly fine consort's chambers before you take permanent residence in the Fire Lady's suites."

She ignored the complaint and focused on him. He was going to fall asleep. In the middle of the morning. She stood up and opened her doors. On the floor was her neatly ordered tray of food. She pulled that in and propped the tray on her lap, shoving him over playfully to make room for her. Ladling some of the soup she brought it to his lips.

He opened his eyes and instinctively sat up, accepting her offering. He sighed and was about to slither down on her bed when she continuously fed him bits of food from the tray. He almost ate one of her fingers in the process but she flicked his nose in response. "None of that. You have delegates to attend to. After lunch you said."

"I'm not sure I can move," Zuko confessed. "But I haven't--"

"It does wonders for my ego that you're thinking of me," she fed him one morsel at a time. He ate obediently. He'd learned that she liked feeding him after the sessions. It was another aspect of their relationship. "Honestly, I was really thinking of postponing all of these activities until the wedding night."

That got his attention. "Are you serious?"

"Patience, sometimes you lack that far too often." She fed him another morsel of food. "Besides, it's your turn next."

oOo

When the delegates reconvened. They found the Fire Lord relaxed and more able to concentrate on the meeting.

Even if he did smell strongly of Fire blossoms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bonus points to those who got the reference to [](http://community.livejournal.com/omoni_scribbles/profile)[**omoni_scribbles**](http://community.livejournal.com/omoni_scribbles/)'s fanfic.  
>  There's already a pretty damned good knife play/blood play story in fanfiction.net: [Release](http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4439234/1/bRelease_b) by RueBroadway, so I didn't want to encroach on that.
> 
> Resource for  
> [Knifeplay ](http://www.albanypowerexchange.com/BDSMinfo/knife_play.htm) taken here


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